Voices of the Bar 1/26/17: What changes do you expect in your practice area under the new administration?

Posted January 26, 2017

With a variety of policy issues currently in the news, we wanted to hear from our members about what they expect to change in their practice area under the Trump administration. We reached out specifically to real estate, health law, immigration law and trust and estates law attorneys.

For this week’s “Voices of the Bar” column, we’re reaching out to ask:

“What changes do you expect in your practice area under the new administration?“

Tara Myslinski – O’Connor, Carnathan & Mack “I don’t expect any changes to my business litigation practice due to the new administration. I will continue to work to keep our profession above the fray and to reject the pervasive use of falsehoods and derision of opponents that we are seeing in our politics. Outside of my practice, I expect a lot to change. I expect to spend a lot more of my free time working on behalf of the causes in which I believe, especially protecting the environment and human rights, and supporting elected officials who stand by these values.”

Colin Zick – Foley Hoag “As a health care attorney, I have spent the better part of the last seven years working on matters related to the Affordable Care Act. Now we are looking at the repeal, revision and/or replacement of significant portions of ACA by the Trump Administration It’s difficult to imagine a bigger 180 degree turn in law and policy than we are looking at.”

Jeffrey Pike – Goulston & Storrs “I’m optimistic that the development community will continue to build on the positive momentum of the past several years. The Trump transition team has purportedly identified fifty or so projects that they have deemed priorities for our national infrastructure, including finalizing the Green Line extension from Cambridge to Somerville and Medford. While it remains to be seen whether the federal funding will actually make it to the Hub, initiatives to increase public and private investment – whether through tax reform, direct funding or otherwise – should have wide implications across a multitude of sectors of our economy, with the real estate community being an obvious beneficiary.”

Quinn Hetrick – Mintz Levin “Trump’s tax proposals call for the repeal of the estate and GST tax, which would bigly impact the trusts and estates practice. If these proposals are passed, estate planners would need to shift our focus to asset protection planning, income tax planning, and the potential return of the estate tax under alternate facts.”

If you would like to respond to a future Voices of the Bar, make sure you send aheadshot, and contact Lauren DiTullio at [email protected].